Don Cheadle is confident that his Miles Davis biopic will not remain in development hell. The iconic jazz musician has not had his story told on the big screen for numerous reasons, but Cheadle’s vision for MILES AHEAD seems to be the one that may finally be seen by audiences. With the support of Davis’ family, Don Cheadle plans to direct and star in the film that focuses on a very specific period in the trumpeter’s life.
Join Miles Davis as he busts out of his silent period with an unlikely partner in crime, guns blazing, to steal back his music, and conjure his long lost love.
Cheadle has taken to crowdsourcing website IndieGoGo to raise funds for MILES AHEAD and is offering some pretty cool incentives that include limited edition shirts, access to the music from the film, and even a chance to golf with Don Cheadle himself.
Cheadle even offers the the rationale that Miles Davis considered his music to be social in nature and meant to be shared, like this crowdsourcing campain.
I want to tell a story that Miles himself would have wanted to see, something hip, cool, alive and AHEAD. I’ve taken my marching orders from Miles’ mandates (“Play what’s not there.” “Fear no mistakes. There are none.”) and focused in on a very specific point in his life to explore his relationship with his muse, his voice, his fears and challenges to come out of his silent period and return to the music. I’m hopefully making a movie that tells a story many people can relate to, jazz fan or not. MILES AHEAD is not just about the music. It’s about what we all face at one time or another in our lives; questions about who we really are, what we have to say and how will we say it. How will we ultimately be defined and who gets to say so?
I have always liked Don Cheadle as an actor and vastly prefer him as Rhodey in the IRON MAN films over Terence Howard. We know the man can handle the acting side and this will be an interesting experiment to see if he can balance the directing of such a fiery story. Hopefully this campaign raises the funds it deserves.